A Brother's Job
by Revolutionary Venom
Summary: A sibling's occupation is supposed to be to protect their other brothers and sisters, isn't it?
1. Hatching Days and Current Happenings

HALLO THAR A-GAIN. What's up? This is a story that's been mulling around in my head for awhile now, so when I finally got the time to start, it came pouring out enough to make a decent sized chapter. While I know that there are probably a zillion Wildwing/Nosedive bonding/angst stories, I figured I'd do one that didn't involve foster homes, orphanages, etc...speaking of which, whoever thought that the two grew up without parents? How did THAT start?

P.S. Another question: why does half the fanfic realm believe that Nosedive's middle name is "Nicholas?"

P.S.S. Since it seems that everyone in the MD fanfic realm associates "Birthday" with "Hatching Day", I did my own spin on it (but not without doing research, of course). Enjoy

Disclaimer: I don't own MD:TAS. If I did, I'd be rich. HOWEVER, I do own the "lullaby" that is sung in this chapter. DON'T STEAL IT. Or I shall come after you with a rusty spork!

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* * *

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_The three Flashblades sat around an incubator that held an egg about the size of a basketball or so inside. Mother and Father both had stayed in shifts in the Incubation Unit of the hospital to observe and wait. _

_Their three and a half year old son, Wildwing, who was currently sitting on his father's lap, had been waiting _forever _it seemed for the egg. His mother had told him a long time ago that he was going to get a new baby brother or sister. When the egg was "delivered" to them, they'd have to wait a little while longer for it to hatch. _

_Wildwing didn't _want _to wait. It had already been a little over two weeks since the egg came, and now he had to wait longer! He wanted his brother or sister now!_

_Suddenly, the egg inside the incubator started to move. Wildwing noticed this. "Dad, look!" he exclaimed. "It's moving!"_

_Papa and Mama Flashblade both looked in delight and excitement to see that their son was right; their egg was beginning to hatch. They would finally find out whether they would have a baby girl or another son. _

"_Is it cold?" Wildwing asked his dad, watching the egg continue to move. _

_Papa Flashblade just laughed. "No Champ, it's hatching," he said, hearing the mother chuckling a little too. "Your brother or sister is finally coming."_

"_REALLY?" Wildwing exclaimed, looking up at his dad._

"_Just watch and see," his father told him. _

_So the almost four year old turned back and watched the egg in the box-like object. The egg inside continued to wiggle for a few more moments when suddenly…_

…_it stopped. _

_Wildwing almost freaked out, but before he could, the egg started to crack. A large spider web of cracks appeared on the side of the egg. Wildwing leaned closer from his seat on his father's lap, who was already pretty close to the incubator to begin with. As the duckling pressed a hand against the incubator, a tiny hand popped out from the egg._

_Wildwing gasped in surprise. He had never seen anything like this before! It was kind of neat to him. He continued to watch with his mother and father as the egg continued to hatch._

_Another tiny hand popped out, followed by a small foot. More shell continued to fall off as the other foot came out and the baby duckling was revealed. _

"_What is it, what is it?" Wildwing asked excitedly, seeing the baby. His mother smiled, getting up from her seat and leaning over the incubator. "You have a brother now Wing," she said, lovingly looking at the small duck inside._

_Wildwing observed his new baby brother; he was little, with light yellow feathers and a small mop of blonde hair. He wiggled a little, stretching his little arms._

_The father laughed a little. "Quite a creature, isn't he?" the older Flashblade asked. "He's your little brother now Champ. It's a brother's job to protect their siblings y'know."_

"_Really?" Wing asked, looking up at his father. When Papa Flashblade nodded, Wildwing just looked back at his new brother, surprised at what he was seeing._

_The baby duckling had managed to turn his head in his older brother's direction and was looking at him. The older brother smiled, keeping his hand on the side of the incubator. "Hiya!" he said. "I'm your big brother now. Do you wanna be my younger brother?"_

_The duckling just answered with a smile, gurgling a little. _

"_So, what shall we name him?" Mama Flashblade asked her husband, still looking down at her new son. _

_Her husband thought for a moment as the child on his lap continued to stare happily at his new brother. "How about Nosedive?" he finally asked. _

_The mother looked at her husband and let this mull over for a few moments. "I like that," she answered. "It has a nice ring to it." She then looked back down to her child. "Welcome to the family Nosedive."_

_Wildwing's face seemed to brighten even more. "I'm Wildwing," he said to the other duck. "It's nice to meet you Nosedive!"…_

_**RVRVRVRVRVRVRV**_

The leader of the group woke up, feeling…weird.

Wildwing moaned and opened his eyes, seeing the bottom of the bunk above him. He sat up, rubbing his eyes. _Feathers, what happened?_ he thought, wondering why he felt so groggy.

He pushed the covers of his bed off himself and turned to touch his feet to the floor. Wing then noticed something else odd. _Why am I in my street clothes? Where's the mask?_

He moaned again, rubbing his temples while looking at the clock across the room, seeing Drake Ducaine's mask sitting next to it.

2:18 A.M.

Wing wondered why he woke up at such an odd time. "Dive, you awake?"

No answer.

_Probably asleep,_ the unmasked leader thought. He stood up, wobbling a little in the process. _What's wrong with me? _Wildwing wondered, turning around to face the top bunk. "Nosedive?"

He wasn't expecting an empty bunk to greet him.

_Where could he possibly be at this hour of the night?_ the goalie thought. It took him a moment, but he thought of someplace he might be.

So he headed off towards the kitchen.

_**RVRVRVRVRVRVRV**_

"NOSEDIVE! Where are you?"

Wildwing was running through the underground halls of the Pond, desperately looking for his younger brother. When he hadn't found Dive in the kitchen, he started to get worried. He then checked the Rec Room, thinking that maybe his brother couldn't sleep and went to watch TV.

When Wing hadn't found him there, he got worried and started to check every room that he could think of that Nosedive could be in at that time of night. And he still hadn't found him.

There was only one place left that he hadn't checked yet: the Infirmary.

Wildwing practically skidded on the floor to make himself stop. Dive couldn't be there, could he? Why would he need to go to the Infirmary at this time of night?

But then that made the leader wonder why no one had come out of their rooms while he had been searching. He had been practically yelling at the top of his lungs, and no one had left their rooms.

A sick feeling of desperation suddenly filled him as he ran off towards the Infirmary…

_**RVRVRVRVRVRVRV**_

Wildwing had just rounded the corner to the Infirmary to see Mallory and Grin sitting outside the doors on the bench seats. "Wildwing!" Mallory exclaimed. "What are you doing out of bed?"

"What are you guys doing here?" He asked back, straightening up.

The other two averted their gaze from him to look at the floor.

"…guys?"

"…it's a long story," Mallory said, a bit uncomfortably. Grin just stared at the floor, his features looking forlorn.

"…where's Nosedive?" Wildwing asked, a sick feeling filling his stomach.

Neither answered.

The goalie's eyes widened, his breathing suddenly stopping. _Great Drake, he's…_

His world started to go black, and he felt the sensation like he was falling. Wildwing could hear voices from somewhere, calling his name, but he couldn't answer…

___**RVRVRVRVRVRVRV**_

_A month had passed since Nosedive had hatched. Since then, Wildwing discovered some rather different things about baby ducklings; they cried a lot (for reasons that only his parents seemed to know) and they liked shiny objects. _

_Or at least the youngest Flashblade did. _

_Another thing that the older sibling found out was that he could make his brother feel better if need-be by doing silly things. If Nosedive cried and neither mother nor father could get him to stop, Wildwing would come into the room and entertain him. _

_Despite what other kids his age said about their siblings, Wing liked having a younger brother. Most of the kids in the daycare he went to would say bad things about their younger brothers and sisters, saying that they were stealing their parents attention away._

"_My brother's not like that," Wildwing had said to one of the complainers._

"_That's 'cuz he's only been there a month. Just wait."_

_But he still didn't have any idea what the kids meant. Whenever he went to see one of his parents and if they happened to have Nosedive, the adult in question would either include Wildwing or put down Nosedive for a nap (that was another thing Wing discovered; babies liked to sleep a lot and got cranky when woken up.)_

_Today, Mama Flashblade was sitting in a rocker in the nursery of their house, going to and fro gently with the youngest in her arms, softly singing a lullaby. The older sibling watched from the doorway, smiling a little as he watched his new brother sleeping and listened to his mother sing._

"_Painted fields of white and pink,_

_Like a wanderer, I wander on,_

_Watching flowers that pass by me,_

_Seeing people as I travel,_

_They'll never know just how special these moments are to me."_

_His mother stopped when she realized that Wildwing was at the doorway. "Hi sweetie," she greeted in a soft voice, not wanting to wake up the younger duckling in her arms. She then motioned for him to enter. "Come over here." _

_Wildwing obeyed, still smiling. His mother smiled back. "Would you like to sit with me?" she asked. _

"_Can I?" the older duckling asked, worried that he might not fit since his brother was in his mother's arms. _

_Mama Flashblade giggled. "Of course you can," she said. With the arm that wasn't holding Nosedive, she helped Wildwing onto the rocker and onto her lap. After a little adjusting, the three were comfortably sitting in the rocking chair, both children on their mother's lap._

_Wildwing looked at his brother. The youngest was napping, a smile adorning his face. _

_The mother watched as Wildwing just observed Nosedive. She then asked, "What do you think of having a baby brother?"_

_Wing looked up at her. "I think it's great!" he said. "When he gets bigger, we can play together and I can teach him how to skate and play hockey and-"_

"_Alright my darling," his mother cut off, laughing. Wildwing smiled brightly, relaxing against his mother while watching his younger brother. _

_As his mother started to hum her song again, it wasn't long before the older Flashblade sibling also fell asleep…_

_**RVRVRVRVRVRVRV**_

"-easy Wing, just take it easy."

The goalie could hear someone's voice and feel something cold on his forehead. The voice sounded a little far off, but it was trying to comfort him, that much he knew.

"Is he alright?" another voice asked.

"He'll be fine," the voice that woke him up said. "He just fainted. But it's not surprisin', considerin' what happened earli'ah."

_What? What happened? Where's-_

"-Dive."

"Wildwing!"

The leader opened his eyes to see three faces looking down at him. "You alright Wing?" Duke asked, who was kneeling next to him.

"What happened?" the goalie asked, confused as to why he was lying on one of the bench seats.

"You collapsed," Duke answered, taking the compress that had been on Wildwing's forehead away. "Mallory came and got me after you did."

Wildwing slowly sat up. "How long have I been out?" he asked, rubbing his eyes with one hand.

"About fifteen minutes or so," Mallory answered. Noticing that their team captain was moving slower than normal, she dared to ask, "Still feeling groggy?"

Wildwing looked up at her, somewhat shocked. "How'd you know?" he asked.

"Do you remember the battle earlier tonight?" Grin asked, sitting next to their unmasked leader.

Wildwing paused. "Some of it," he answered, bringing a hand to his head. "Siege and Chameleon were down at the warehouse district, and we were fighting them when Wraith showed up…" He struggled to pass the hazy cloud that blocked his memory. "I…I remember shouting at everyone to be careful, but I can't remember anything other than that."

The others looked at each other uncomfortably, as their leader noticed that Duke was wearing slightly bloody scrubs. "Duke are you alright?" Wildwing panicked.

The ex-thief looked down at the scrubs he was wearing, suddenly remembering the blood. "I'm alright," he said, looking back at Wing. This statement seemed to calm the leader down until Duke spoke again.

"It's not my blood."

After a moment, the goalie dared to ask. "Who's is it?"

It was the gray drake's turn to pause.

"Duke?"

"…it's Nosedive's."


	2. Wildwing's Wait and a Past Memory

HELLO THAR A-GAIN. Here's chapter two! I hope none of you come after me as you read the story. I don't wanna die!

P.S. I did more research for this story. Y'know the phrase "so angry I'm seeing red"? Explanation at the end

Disclaimer: I don't own MD:TAS. If I did, I'd be rich.

* * *

"…what?"

"It's the kid's blood. He got hurt pretty badly."

Wildwing just stared at the blood on Duke's scrubs, feeling numb. He couldn't remember his brother getting hurt.

Shouldn't he remember something like that?

Then he noticed a stretchy, purple-colored looking bandaged wrapped around Duke's left elbow. "You gave him blood?" the leader asked.

Duke looked at the bandage, having completely forgotten about it. "Yeah, earli'ah I did," he answered. Looking back up at Wildwing, he said, "Since the kid's a Type O, I'm the only one that can donate. So I did."

"And you helped Tanya?"

"For awhile," Duke admitted. He went from kneeling on the floor to just sitting. "Aft'ah I gave up some blood, Tanya still needed help. So I changed into these and helped her until Mal came and got me."

"…how bad is he?"

Duke just looked away.

Near panicking, Wildwing finally asked, "What happened? What happened that he got so hurt?"

No one answered.

His panic was beginning to border insanity as he looked at Duke, Mallory, and Grin. "Guys, tell me!" he exclaimed. "What happened?!

"Does the phrase 'it's a brothah's job to protect their siblings' ring a bell?" Duke asked his leader.

Wing's eyes widened. "…where'd you hear that?"

"Nosedive said it sometime on the way back here," Mallory answered, placing a hand on Wing's shoulder. "We thought he was just out of it, since he was hurt so bad-"

"No, he wasn't," Wildwing said. "It was something our parents used to say to me. I didn't think Dive had ever heard it; guess I was wrong."

A moment of silence among the group. Then Wildwing dared to ask, "What happened in the fight?"

"The last thing you rememb'ah was tellin' everyone to be careful, right?" Duke asked.

The leader nodded.

"Well, we were all waiting for Chameleon and Siege to come out of the fog that Wraith had conjured up," Mallory said, taking her hand away from Wildwing's shoulder. "We heard you yell to everyone to keep up their guard since the fog was pretty thick. Then Siege came out of nowhere…"

The usually fiery red-head found she couldn't continue. Her eyes began to fill with tears as Grin picked up from where she left off. "Siege came out of the fog behind you. You had your back to him when our young friend yelled for you to get out of the way."

When he didn't continue any farther, Wildwing felt like his heart hit his stomach. "Then what?" he asked, afraid to know.

Grin didn't answer for a moment. Then, he looked at Duke. "You saw it best," the larger drake said. "Tell him."

Duke took a breath before he started, Wildwing's heart sinking lower as he looked from Grin to the older drake on the floor.

"The kid yelled for you to look out," the ex-thief started. "You started to turn around as Siege was comin' at ya. But then, it seemed outta nowhere Dive was in front of you. It was like frickin' Houdini; one moment he was elsewhere, the next in front of you, or rath'ah, at your back.

"Then…Siege smacked him with that tail of his. Nosedive had made it just in time to get cuffed with that tail and sail across the room and into a concrete wall." Duke hid his good eye in his hand, the red eye beginning to slit the eye patch on his other eye. "It…it was like watchin' in slow motion. Where ya try to do somethin', but ya can't move and everythin' slows down. And believe me Wing, I tried to get the kid after Siege hit him, but…he went too fast. I couldn't even get my arm up to use my grapplin' hook so I could keep him from hittin' the wall."

When Duke didn't continue, Wildwing could only guess what happened next. "Then what?" he asked, surprised that he found his voice to speak and feeling tears beginning to spill over.

Duke rubbed the hand that had been covering his eye through his hair/feathers. "Siege started laughin', actin' like what he'd just done was the funniest thing ev'ah," he said. "Tanya and Grin ran towards Nosedive and Mallory and I were about to come at Siege when suddenly…you snapped.

"The eyes of the mask stah'ted glowin', and you went after Siege. We yelled at you not to, but you didn't listen to us, or rath'ah _couldn't _hear us…and you started beatin' him up like he was a stuffed animal."

Wildwing looked stunned. "…I did that?" he asked.

"Yes," Mallory answered sadly. "Tanya says she thinks you hit that point of rage where a person can't focus on anything other than whatever made them mad."

"Whateva it was, you still went crazy," Duke said. "You got him pretty good too, at least until the three of them teleported away. When they were gone, you were still blood-crazed. You were wantin' to go aft'ah them with the Mask. But before you got anywhere, Tanya got you with a tranq."

"We got you both onto the Migrator and came back here," Mallory said. "You've been out until now and Tanya's been working on Nosedive."

Wildwing was silent for awhile, staring at the floor in disbelief at what he had just heard. "Great DuCaine," he finally muttered. He then looked at Duke. "How hurt is he?"

"…it's pretty bad," Duke said. "When Siege cuffed him, that alone broke a few ribs. But Nosedive hit a _solid concrete wall_, and the impact left a spider web of cracks in tha' wall. Tanya and I had to open him up to work on some internal bleedin' too."

"Did he go into shock?" Wildwing asked cautiously.

"Yeah," Duke answered. "He did. On our way back, we were tryin' to keep Dive awake by talkin' to him, but he was really out of it and started coughin' up blood."

"…anything else you can tell me?"

Duke shook his head. "I think Tanya would be a better choice at tellin' ya," he said. "I only know a few injuries, and she told me to stay out here with you until she came and got everyone."

"Why stay with me?"

"You fainted, rememb'ah?"

"Oh…yeah."

So for a long time, the four ducks sat outside the doors of the Infirmary, lost in their own thoughts.

_How could this have happened?_ Wildwing thought, staring at the floor between his feet._ I don't remember anything about that, just everything before. Why did Nosedive even do that? I don't get it!_

Mallory sighed, sitting cross-legged next to Wildwing. _What was the point of trying to take out Wildwing? Did Siege just try for kicks, or was he actually_ hoping _that someone would come and defend him?_

Grin crossed his arms over his chest and laid back a little against the wall. _Things that happen in which we do not understand. I wonder if the philosophers of Earth are right; like Georg Hegel with his saying, 'Genuine tragedies in the world are not conflicts between right and wrong. They are conflicts between two rights.'_

Duke got up and moved to the bench seat across from the others, sitting down. He hadn't felt this exhausted in a long time, and he felt his years starting to come down on him.

_The kid did a noble thing tonight,_ the gray mallard thought._ But it was stupid at the same time…or I'm sure that's what Wing's thinkin'. _He then sighed._ Nosedive doesn't deserve to be battered around like that. He's just a kid!…But a noble one at that._

_**RVRVRVRVRVRVRV**_

_Five year old Wildwing looked into the room that served as the nursery. _

_He was starting to get worried. His almost year old brother was sick, but he didn't know what it was that was making him sick. His parents had been up almost every night for a few days with Nosedive, sleeping in shifts while trying to make the child feel better. _

_From the doorway, Wildwing could see Mama Flashblade sitting with Nosedive, who was wrapped up in a blanket as she tried to ease a coughing fit the younger one was in._

"_Mama?"_

_The young mother looked to the doorway to see her oldest standing there in his pajamas. "What are you doing out of bed sweetheart?" she asked. "It's late."_

"_I heard Dive coughin'," he said. "What's wrong with him?"_

_The mother sighed. "Come here sweetheart," she said. "Maybe you can help him feel better."_

_So the young duckling walked over to where his mother and brother sat, crawling up into the rocker with her. Nosedive had just stopped coughing, and it looked to Wildwing like he was having a problem or two breathing. "What's wrong with him?" he asked again._

"_He's sick," she simply said, running a hand over Wildwing's short, fluffy hair. _

"_With what?"_

"_It's something a lot of ducklings get. It's called the Croup. He's trying to concentrate on breathing right now."_

_Wildwing looked at his younger brother, really worried now. "Is it really bad?" he asked, a bit scared._

_His mother smiled a little. "Right now, it's not," she said to him. "A lot of kids your age and younger get like this. Nosedive just needs to rest and concentrate on getting better."_

_As the older duckling watched his brother, his mind wandered about a lot of things; why his brother was sick, how bad it was that his parents took turns sleeping, etc._

_He was so lost in his own thoughts that he even didn't notice when the baby's eyes opened. _

_But Mama Flashblade did. She smiled and said, "I think someone wants to see you Wing."_

_This snapped the elder duckling out of his thoughts. He looked at Nosedive to see that he, in fact, was awake and was concentrating on Wildwing. "Dive!" he exclaimed excitedly. He leaned over closer. "Are you o-"_

_**RVRVRVRVRVRVRV**_

"-kay Wing?"

Wildwing woke up hearing someone's voice. "Wha?"

"I was asking if you were alright," Mallory said. "You were talking in your sleep."

The leader rubbed his eyes, trying to rid himself of sleep. "I'm alright."

"Then you might wanna - uh - listen up."

The drake's head snapped up to see Tanya standing right in front of him, Duke beside her.

"Tanya!" Wildwing exclaimed. He stood up real fast, only to be caught by Grin as he nearly fell back down.

"Whoa there Wildwing, take it easy," Tanya said as the leader stood back upright. "You've been through a lot too, so you need to - uh - rest too."

"How's Nosedive?" Wildwing asked, Grin and Mallory at each of his sides to help him stay upright.

Tanya took a deep breath, then began her answer.

"It's pretty bad Wildwing. The impact from Siege's tail alone broke several of his ribs on his right side, as well as getting stabbed by one of those spikes on the end. Then I guess everything else came from when he hit the wall."

When she paused, Wildwing noticed something. Tanya wasn't stuttering or using what he called 'filler words' as she spoke.

So he knew that it could only get worse.

"He's got a concussion, and it's pretty bad. We won't know until he wakes up if there's any permanent brain damage. A few ribs on his left are cracked, the bone in his right leg _was _sticking out, but Duke helped me repair that. His left arm is broken as well. And…"

"And what?"

"…he had a few 'bouts of ventricular tachycardia when we were in surgery."

The three in front of her just stared at her. "What does _that _mean?" asked Grin.

"It means that the 'electricity' that keeps his heart beating was out of whack and it needed to be shocked back into the proper rhythm."

She let the news sink into everyone's mind. Wildwing staggered backwards to the bench seat, his head in one of his hands. "Great Mother of Ducks," he whispered. He could feel the hint of new tears in his eyes.

Tanya could feel his pain. Problem was, she hadn't allowed her emotions to come in the way of Nosedive's treatment and she sure as puck wasn't going to until the job was fully done. "Do you want to see him?" she asked Wildwing.

The leader looked up at her. "Can I?" he asked cautiously.

She nodded.

Wildwing stood up and started for the door.

"Just…be prepared for what you see Wing."

He looked back at Duke. "Why? I've already heard how bad off he is."

The ex-thief just looked at him sadly. "Sometimes it's worse to see than it is to he'ah," he answered.

* * *

Like I said at the top, there is a point of rage that some people can reach. I believe it happens when the person in question's blood pressure reaches a certain point, though usually I hear it happens when they are angry (like Catherine Zeta-Jones says in the Chicago movie, "Well, I was in such a state of shock, I completely blacked out, I can't remember a thing. It wasn't until later, when I was washing the blood off my hands, I even knew they were dead.")


	3. Grin's Chat and Skating Reflections

HI THAR. So, since none of you have killed me yet for doing this story, here's another chapter. And (for once) Grin's getting a BIG role in a chapter. Of course, since he usually speaks in proverbs and Zen sayings on the show, this chapter is about half-and-half, though more on the 'normal speaking' side. I also used a little bit from the episode "Power Play"

P.S. Researching "The Path to Enlightenment" is a hard subject, but I managed to come up with something for this chapter. In other words, the step that Grin mentions is one of eight in the path

Disclaimer: I don't own MD:TAS. If I did, I'd be rich

* * *

"_C'mon Nosedive, we're gonna be late to play!"_

"_Comin'!"_

_The four year old came towards his almost nine year old brother, skates over his shoulder, a broad smile on his face. "Kay, I'm ready!" the younger exclaimed._

_Wildwing laughed. "We gotta put your skates on first," he said. "C'mon, let's go sit on the porch and I'll tie them." He then looked towards the living room. "We're going outside Dad!"_

_Papa Flashblade came out of the living room to see his two boys at the door. "Alright, you're meeting Canard and his mom at the rink down the street, right?" he asked._

"_Yes Dad," Wing answered. _

"_Alright then boys, have a good time," the father said. "And if I'm at work before you get home-"_

"_I know, Mom'll be here and we'll see you tomorrow," Wildwing said, opening the front door. Dive waved at his dad as the father laughed. "Am I that predictable?" he asked._

"_Sometimes," Wildwing answered. "But that's okay. Bye Dad!"_

"_Bye-bye!" Nosedive echoed, following his brother out the door._

_The older Flashblade sibling closed the door and the two sat down on the porch. "Put your skates on, then I'll tie them," Wing said as he began to lace up his own. Nosedive took the skates off his shoulder and put one on the porch next to him, taking the other to put on his foot. _

_Wildwing had finished tying up the laces on his own skates when Nosedive said, "These feel funny. They aren't 'opposed to, are they?"_

_The older one looked at his brother's feet and just laughed. "That's because you got them on the wrong feet," he said. "You gotta switch 'em."_

"_Oooohhhh," Nosedive marveled. He took his skates off and managed to get them on the right sides this time. "Kay!" He turned to face Wildwing. "Tie?"_

"_I said I would, didn't I?" the elder asked, a smile on his face. Nosedive just smiled back as his big brother started to lace up his skates…_

_**RVRVRVRVRVRVRV**_

Wildwing woke up, feeling a tad groggy, but nothing like he had the first time he had woken up earlier that morning (of course, who wouldn't feel groggy at 2 A.M.?). He looked around to see that he had fallen asleep in the chair he had pulled up to the side of Nosedive's bed in the Infirmary. Wing unclasped the hand that had held Nosedive's broken, left hand and rubbed his eyes. _What time is it?_ he thought.

"Good morning."

Wildwing looked to the Infirmary doors to see Grin, two mugs in his hands. "What time is it?" the leader asked.

"About eight thirty," the larger drake said, coming in. He handed Wildwing one of the mugs when he reached the side of the bed. The leader accepted the mug, smelling fresh coffee. He took a sip and sighed. "Duke make this?" he asked.

"No, I did.

Wildwing looked at Grin, puzzled. "I thought you hated coffee."

The larger drake chuckled. "Unless it is absolutely necessary," he answered. "It's good with the right flavors. But then again, Duke taught me that. And besides that, both he and Tanya are resting now."

Wildwing frowned and looked back at Nosedive. _They both deserve to sleep, after all they did to help him,_ the older Flashblade thought.

He took a better look at his brother. When the goalie had first come in during the night, he couldn't do anything but stare and see all the injuries as one whole.

Now that it was morning, he could see all the separate ones.

Bandages covered Nosedive from his waist to the top of his chest, some going over both his shoulders. His left arm from hand to elbow was in a cast, an IV in his right hand with stars-only-knew-what in the bags hanging on the IV pole that it was connected to. A heart monitor was hooked up as well, the monitor itself sitting on the table next to the bed. More bandages were wrapped around his head, making Wildwing think of the time Dive had fallen off that cliff and made a duck-shaped hole in the snow. A cast was also on his right leg, but unless one looked under the blankets covering the teenager, not many would know. Other than that, there were bumps, bruises, and mass amounts of stitches in the visible parts of the younger one's body.

Wildwing felt terrible about what had happened, though he couldn't remember the events. He looked down at his coffee mug, just to look away from the mangled body that was his brother.

"You don't need to feel shame."

The goalie looked up at Grin, who was gazing at Nosedive. "All tragedies of this world happen with reason," the larger drake told him. His voice lowered. "Though it's sometimes hard to remember that."

"What reason would there be for my brother to have the need to get clobbered by Siege?" asked Wildwing.

Grin shrugged. "We learn from our past, good memories, bad ones, and tragedies," he answered. "According to both my master, Tae Quack Do and the humans of Earth anyway."

"Somehow, I don't believe that," Wildwing said before taking another drink of coffee. He paused for a moment, then looked again at Grin, who was pulling another chair up next to him. "Why do you believe that?"

"I suppose, like Duke, it's because I have a…different…past than the rest of you," Grin answered, sitting down. For a few moments, he thought of a way to put the next bit.

Then he tossed that out the window and went for the truth.

"As I said once before, I was from a 'hard-boiled egg'," Grin started. "My family life was not like a normal duckling's. Therefore, I had a terrible temper. When my master began to teach me of the Path to Enlightenment, I began to see my entire life in a different way."

"What does Enlightenment have to do with learning from the past?"

"Many things," Grin answered. "In fact, one step both my master and Earthlings teach is the step of Right Effort. It's where one must release themselves from all evil states of mind that already exist and keep new evil states of mind from arising."

Wildwing just looked at him, still confused.

"It does sound confounding, but is not actually so hard to understand," Grin told him, placing his mug on a table that sat at the end of the Med-I-Com bed. "It means that if one was like me, basically, they must stop whatever they were doing in life and take a new, better role." He thought for a moment. "I suppose a good example of this would be our friend Duke. Once part of a guild of thieves, he now works to fight for justice to stop the evil in this world, along with our original mission."

Wildwing let the larger drake's words mull around in his head, taking another drink of his coffee. "Okay, I could see that," he finally admitted. "But I'm not on a path to enlighten myself. I just want to understand why this happened."

"Unfortunately, that is something you must find on your own," Grin told him. "Though we learn from our past, we must learn it on our own. Otherwise, we can never overcome it."

Wildwing just sat for a few minutes as he drank what was left in his mug. Then he said, "I'm not sure what I'll learn at this point in time, but…thanks for the words Grin. I do have something to think about now."

"You are welcome." With that, Grin took his own mug along with Wildwing's empty one and started to leave. He got to the doors, but didn't exit just yet.

"I think you should hear one more phrase I have learned since coming to Earth. It may help you."

The goalie looked up to where Grin stood. "What's that?"

"Genuine tragedies in the world are not conflicts between right and wrong. They are conflicts between two rights."

"What does that mean?"

Grin just smiled at the leader and walked out, the doors 'whooshing' open and closed.

Wildwing looked back at Nosedive, now thoroughly confused.

_**RVRVRVRVRVRVRV**_

"_Wing! Wait up!"_

_Wildwing turned around and stopped to see his almost seven year old brother skating up the street. The eleven and half year old smiled. "I told you to hurry up with your skates," he said to his younger brother. _

_In fact, the older had put on his skates and gone a little way down the street, with no intention of leaving Dive behind as the younger one was lacing his own skates. He just liked to play this game every once in awhile to see if the younger duckling was going to follow him or not. Usually Nosedive did, unless something else caught his attention._

_But that in itself was really rare. The younger sibling almost always concentrated on his brother when they were about to go out._

_The younger Flashblade finally caught up to his brother. "Why'd you go without me?" he asked, slightly hurt._

"_I'm sorry," Wildwing apologized. "I was just thinking of what to get you for a present."_

_Lately, since Nosedive's Hatching Day was coming up, this was the excuse that Wildwing gave him. And every time he said this, Nosedive would brighten up and forgive his elder brother._

"_What is it, what is it?!" he asked excitedly. _

"_I can't tell you, or it wouldn't be a surprise."_

"_Aw! That's no fun!"_

_Wildwing smiled. "But you know what is?"_

_Nosedive looked up at him. "What?"_

"_Hockey! We're going to go play with Canard, remember?"_

_Nosedive brightened up like a Christmas light. "Yeah!" he cheered. "Let's go play hockey!"_


	4. Nosedive Wakes Up with a Story

Happy Easter! Still, since no one has tried to kill me yet for writing this story, here's yet another chapter.

P.S. I seem to be emphasizing Georg Hegel's quote a bit more than I would've wanted. But I guess it's because that, while the quote might mean that it's two different people who think they are right, it could mean something else. I'm not much into philosophy, but I'll have to look more into Hegel

Disclaimer: I don't own MD:TAS. If I did, I'd be rich

* * *

Some time had passed, and it was now about four in the afternoon. Wildwing hadn't once left the Infirmary nor barely eaten when Duke had brought a tray for him earlier. He felt that he couldn't leave Nosedive's side, especially since this was all his fault. Wing had always felt that it was _his _job to protect the younger Flashblade, but he was beginning to wonder about something, especially after what Duke and Mallory had told him the previous night.

_"Does the phrase 'it's a brothah's job to protect their siblings' ring a bell?" Duke asked his leader._

_Wing's eyes widened. "…where'd you hear that?"_

_"Nosedive said it sometime on the way back here," Mallory answered, placing a hand on Wing's shoulder. "We thought he was just out of it, since he was hurt so bad-"_

_"No, he wasn't," Wildwing said. "It was something our parents used to say to me. I didn't think Dive had ever heard it…"_

The goalie was beginning to wonder just when Nosedive learned that phrase. Did he just happen to overhear it one day or had their parents once said it to him as well? He wasn't sure and there was only one way he could find out now that the Flashblade siblings were here in a different dimension.

Nosedive would have to answer his question. Problem was, Wildwing had no idea when his younger brother would wake up. Tanya had confirmed that he wasn't in a coma. Something about the delta brain waves and whatnot; the leader hadn't really listened after she said that he wasn't comatose.

Wildwing rested his head in his hands, staring down at the floor.

_I messed up big this time, _he thought, fresh tears beginning to surface._ First I let Canard sacrifice himself in dimensional limbo, then this happens and I can't even remember it happening. _

…_Why do people keep trying to save me? I'm the leader now, aren't I? Shouldn't I be the protector? And what of my own vow? I promised I would take care of and protect Dive after the Saurians invaded back __home. Puck, even after we landed here, I swore I'd look __after __him!_

Wildwing was so caught up in his own thoughts, he didn't notice his brother's fingers twitching.

_Nosedive didn't deserve to be rammed by Siege. It should've been me dammit!_

_IT SHOULD HAVE BEEN ME!_

Suddenly, he felt something on the top of his head.

Then a voice.

"Why so down?"

Wildwing looked up to see Nosedive, awake with his left hand (now on) the right side of the goalie's face. "What's wrong Wing?" asked the younger Flashblade, offering a smile as he took his hand away and laid it back on the bed.

"Nosedive…" Wildwing managed to choke out. A few tears fell.

Then he completely lost it. The leader buried his head into his arms on the bed, tears falling freely. "Thank Drake," he managed to choke out. "I wasn't sure you were gonna wake up."

The teenager just placed his hand back on the top of his older brother's head, stroking his short hair with his fingertips. "You doubted me? I'm shocked," Nosedive said quietly, a hint of amusement in his voice. "Of course I'd wake up. Can't leave ya behind, can I?"

Wildwing raised his head a little bit, just enough to look at Nosedive in the eye. "Have you seen yourself in a mirror lately?" he asked, trying to joke along with his younger sibling, but somewhat failing since he could still feel tears falling.

"Nope," Dive answered, taking his hand away from the top of his brother's head. "And considering how I feel all over, I don't really wanna either."

Wildwing couldn't help but laugh at that. It was just like any other time Dive had gotten hurt; he'd make a joke about how he felt, relating to whatever comments were thrown at him.

The teenager just smiled, glad to see his brother was alright and able to laugh. But then again, he could only savor this for a moment or so, because the younger one knew Wing was going to ask him a certain question.

And he was right. When Wildwing managed to stop laughing, he asked the one question the teenager knew the older one would ask:

"Why did you do that Dive?"

"You already know the answer to that bro," Nosedive answered. "Why do you need to ask?"

"Because I _don't _know," Wildwing told him. He rested his forehead in the palm of his hand. "This has been irritating me since I woke up after collapsing-"

"Ah, so you did wake up last night," Dive said, as if he were confirming something. "I thought you did, but I wasn't sure."

Wildwing looked at his brother. "What do you mean?"

"Uh…I've kinda been in and out at certain points," Nosedive confessed sheepishly. "First, I'm gonna guess that one of the others said that they were trying to keep me awake on our way back here."

When the elder Flashblade nodded, Dive continued. "Well, I heard about Tanya having to tranq you that way. Then, when I sorta woke up later, I could've sworn I heard something about Mal coming to get Duke because you fainted. When I was sorta-awake again, I thought I heard you or felt your hand. I'm not sure right now, I just know it was one of the two and it was after Tanya quit patching me up." He paused as Wing just stared at him. "Does that answer your question?"

"Only one of them," Wildwing said. "Now answer my original question; why'd you do it?"

"It's a brother's job to protect their siblings."

Wildwing just looked at Nosedive sadly. "The policy is supposed to apply to the older one," he said.

"Actually, that's not what I was told."

Wing looked at his brother in surprise. "What do you mean?" That question brought up another question. "When did you hear that saying anyway?"

Nosedive averted his gaze. "Do you remember when I broke my arm when I was ten?"

"Of course I do," Wildwing said. "You were upset over the fact that you couldn't play hockey for the next six weeks."

Nosedive looked back at Wing. "Yeah, but do you remember _how _it happened?"

"…sort of," the leader finally said. "I remember being there where we were all playing, but it all happened so fast. Plus, I was goalie for our team and you were about to score the deciding goal on the opposite side of the rink."

"Like you said, I was about to score the winning goal on the hockey game we were playing for fun," Nosedive said. "But some of the other guys didn't think like that, remember?"

"…yeah. I remember. Most of them were my age and didn't want you to play until you proved how good you were."

"Even Canard didn't want me to play," Dive said. "But I proved myself and I got to. And for some reason or another, the bigger guys on defense thought it would be fun to tackle me, since there were no boards to pin anyone up against. So they did, and one of them landed on my arm and broke it."

Wildwing just listened, wondering where his younger brother was going with this.

"When you skated over, you were fuming at the guys who tackled me. You were threatening 'em. I think you even gave one of them a black eye, but I don't remember. Then you and Canard took me to the hospital Mom worked at."

"Where are you going with this story Dive?" Wildwing asked.

"Let me finish!" Nosedive said. "While we were waiting, Canard asked if you were okay."

"I thought you were asleep while we were waiting for Mom to come back."

"I was. But I woke up. Anyway, you told him that it was your fault that what had happened, happened. When he asked why you thought that, you answered 'because if I hadn't convinced the others to let him play, he wouldn't have gotten hurt'. Then Canard said something along the longs of 'the brat shouldn't follow you everywhere' or something, but I fell asleep again."

Wildwing could feel his face heat up at the mention of Canard's comment. He remembered that comment and could remember wanting to slug his best friend for saying something like that.

"Later, when Mom told you and Canard to go get some soda or something since you hadn't had anything for most of the day, she put the cast on me," Nosedive said, his voice becoming quieter at the mention of his mother. "I told her what you said while she was putting it on. That's when I heard the phrase for the first time. But she told me that it didn't apply to just the older siblings, that it can apply to anyone that has a brother or sister."

Wildwing waited a minute or two. When Nosedive didn't continue, he asked, "What happened then?"

Dive tried to shrug, but he found out it hurt a lot ('course, he wasn't about to let the other know that). "Nothin' really," he said. "You guys came back before I could ask anything else. But for a long time, I wondered what the phrase meant before I finally figured it out."

So now Wildwing knew where the younger one had heard the phrase that had governed almost his entire life; their mother. While their father had been the one to plant that saying into Wildwing's head when Nosedive had hatched, it wasn't until their mother taught Nosedive the exact same saying years later that the phrase had actually been explained.

Wildwing just wished that it had been made clear to him.

_I guess that's what Grin meant earlier by 'genuine tragedies aren't conflicts between right and wrong. They are conflicts between two rights', _Wildwing thought. _I keep thinking that I have to protect Nosedive at every minute of the day when in fact...I can't. And it seems Dive keeps thinking the same about me. So does that mean that those are the 'two rights' in our case? Two brothers who want to protect the other?_

"Bro? What'cha thinkin' 'bout?"

Wildwing snapped out of his thoughts when he heard Nosedive's voice. "Nothing," he said. The older Flashblade looked at him in the eye. "I do want to know something though."

"What is it?"

"…what exactly happened last night? I only remember up to yelling at everyone to be careful when the fog of Wraith's came in. Duke and the others told me what they saw, but I want to know from you."


	5. What Really Happened

HAI. I think I'm starting to develop some weird fictional brother-complex...or maybe all the stress of being close to the end of the semester...Or maybe I just like to torture characters, I'm not real sure. But this chapter is one of the longer ones (if not THE longest) and it took some time to write. Apparently, ideas come at me in the dead hours of the night like triple spicy hot tacos to Nosedive. Anyway, enjoy!

P.S. I had to do some more research on auras. I found out some interesting things about their colors, but since it's a bit...vague...with each color, I think it'd be better for the reader to look up whatever color they wish.

P.S.S. I've had enough neural exams to last me a lifetime (between bad hits to the head and having epilepsy). But while I know what a neurologist will do, it's sometimes hard to describe. So...just bear with my description

Disclaimer: I don't own MD:TAS. If I did, I'd be rich

* * *

"…are you sure you really wanna know Wing?" Nosedive asked slowly.

Wildwing swallowed past the lump that seemed to form in his throat. "Yeah, I wanna know," he answered.

The teenager sighed. "Alright, but don't say I didn't warn ya."

_**RVRVRVRVRVRVRV**_

"_Stay on your guard ducks!" Wildwing yelled to everyone, puck-launching gauntlet in position to shoot if need-be. _

_While Nosedive couldn't see the others very well (if at all) through the thick fog that Wraith had conjured up, he could see the glinting gold of the mask. From what he could tell, Wildwing wasn't very far from him. It made him feel a bit better that he knew where his older brother was, as the teenager held a firm grip on the Puck Blaster in his hand. _

_Suddenly, a sinister laughter could be heard. _

_It seemed to echo throughout the warehouse that the Saurians had decided to attack that night. Nosedive turned a few inches and saw a huge shadow-like shape in the smog. He was about to shoot it when he realized that it was _moving…_and not towards him like he had first thought._

_He watched for a moment to try and figure out which of Dragaunus' henchmen it was. It was too thick to be Wraith, considering he was like a withered-up stick. Maybe a transformed Chameleon?_

_But then, Dive saw the long tail with twin spikes. _

_So all that left was Siege. _

What's he doing?_ Nosedive thought, noticing the larger form moving towards something else. And that something was…_

_Wildwing._

_Nosedive panicked. His brother was still facing the opposite direction, and Siege was coming up right behind him. _

_The younger Flashblade thought for a moment about shooting the Saurian, but then realized, that while he could see the outline of the much larger creature, all he could really see of his brother was the end of Drake DuCaine's mask. _

_Nosedive put the Puck Blaster back in its holster. He couldn't shoot because, while he might hit Siege, he didn't want to accidentally hit Wildwing. _

_So the teenager did the only other thing he knew to do. _

_He activated his rocket skates and raced over as fast as he could. "WILDWING! LOOK OUT!"_

_The leader began to turn around as Siege started to swing his tail around. Nosedive continued to race towards his brother, all the while praying to whatever or whoever was listening that he would make it._

_Then, he found himself in-between the two; the younger one knew what was coming, but he still wasn't expecting the tail to come around at him as fast as _that_, because the next thing he felt was pain. _

_Pure, unfiltered pain. _

_It raced up from his right side where Siege had hit him as he could feel the sensation of flying off somewhere. _"_NO! NOSEDIVE!"_

_The teenager heard his brother's voice before he hit something hard and solid. It was enough to create an even _bigger _sea of pain and he cried out in pain. _

_As he fell to the floor of the warehouse, these last things were seen and heard by the teenager; laughter from Siege, what sounded like growling from Wildwing, and the forms of Tanya and Grin running towards him…_

_**RVRVRVRVRVRVRV**_

"…And that's what happened," Nosedive finished, his voice growing quiet. "Or at least, what happened up until I got knocked out."

Wildwing bowed his head, letting this new bit of information sink into his head. _Great Mother of Ducks,_ he thought, closing his eyes.

He couldn't believe it. Wing _never _would've thought that Nosedive had actually thought about something like that, considering half the time he didn't think in battle; Nosedive usually just acted on whim in battles and counted on luck to save him. And usually it did.

When Wildwing found his voice, he asked again, "Why'd you do it?"

Nosedive rolled his eyes. "This again?" he asked. "I already told you why."

"But this time, I wanna know why you didn't just shoot Siege to avoid all of this," the leader said, raising his head to look at the teenager. "If you had shot him with your blaster, you wouldn't have gotten hurt."

Nosedive sighed. "Maybe not," he agreed. "But I couldn't see you. I had no way of knowing if I was gonna hit you or not."

"But you said you saw the Mask."

"Only glinting from the end of it," Nosedive corrected. "And just because I saw the Mask doesn't mean I knew exactly where you were. I saw his outline. But not yours. So how was I supposed to know if I'd accidently hit you, whether it be in the leg or chest?"

Wildwing was about to come up with a retort to that when suddenly they both heard the doors to the Infirmary open up.

"You're still here Wildwing?"

The leader looked around to see Tanya, doors closing behind her. "You need to rest," she said, coming to the side of the bed, not yet noticing that the teenager was awake. "You've been awa-"

"Hey Taunny!"

Tanya looked down at the teenager. "Nosedive!" she exclaimed.

"The one and only," Dive answered, his usual cocky grin coming to his face.

"How long have you been awake?" she asked, coming around the bed to the other side while pulling out a penlight from her breast pocket.

Wildwing looked at the clock on the wall, seeing it was now almost five. "Almost an hour," the goalie answered, as Tanya leaned over and looked at Nosedive's eyes with her penlight.

"Why didn't you call me?" the tech asked Wildwing, putting her light back in her pocket after a minute, then holding up a finger in front of Nosedive's face. "Follow my finger with your eyes Dive."

"Why?"

"Because it's a -uhm - part of a neural exam. Just do it."

So he did; he followed her finger with his eyes, going from left to right, then up to down. Then Tanya placed a hand on each side of his face. "Alright, now tell me which side you can hear from," she said. She rubbed her fingers together on his left side.

"Left."

Then she rubbed her fingers together on the right side.

"Right."

She continued this for a minute, sometimes doing both hands at once, other times using only one hand. When she was done, she stood back up and looked to Wildwing. "Has he - uh - been speaking well?" she asked. "No slurring or anything?"

"Nope."

"Knew where he was when he woke up?"

"Yeah."

As Tanya continued to ask Wildwing questions, Nosedive frowned. He didn't think Wing would continue to question his actions after he told the older Flashblade the story of what happened. Nosedive placed a hand over his chest, sighing.

And now his chest was beginning to feel funny. Like…a sudden, sharp pain.

Why was that?

Suddenly, the heart monitor that was on the table started making a lot of noise. Nosedive clutched at his upper body as the pain got worse and the battle to take in air started.

"Tanya!"

"I'm on it!"

Dive could hear one pair of scuffling footsteps and another pair running.

"What can I do?"

"Get out!"

"Tanya, there's gotta-"

"So help me Wildwing, if you don't get the puck out of this infirmary right now, I'll de-feather you!"

All the teen remembered after that was the sound of the doors to the Infirmary opening and closing…

_**RVRVRVRVRVRVRV**_

Duke lowered his book, _The Count of Monte Cristo_. He had been reading in his room, since Tanya had pretty much banned him from stepping anywhere near the Infirmary today (unless told to go) after what he had done for both her and Nosedive last night. He had wanted to stay with Wildwing when he had taken a tray earlier, but Wing looked too depressed and tired for company.

Right now however, something was nagging at the ex-thief, like the feeling he'd get if he knew he was walking into a trap. Something wasn't right, but he wasn't exactly sure what.

But he was going to find out.

_**RVRVRVRVRVRVRV**_

Mallory was sitting in the Rec Room, flipping through a fashion magazine when she felt something in her twinge. Almost like when she was back in the Special Forces on Puckworld, when something felt off about an assignment that was given to her by the higher-ups.

Raising her head, she looked around. No one had come into the room, so she was the only one in there.

So why did she suddenly have this feeling of dread?

Placing the magazine on the coffee table, she rose from her seat and left the room…

_**RVRVRVRVRVRVRV**_

_Something is not right here._

Grin had been working out in the Pond's gym, just to relieve some of the stress that he had been feeling. He had tried meditating, which was what he would usually do when stressed.

However, Grin had felt that he could not concentrate on the art of meditation, so he went with the next best thing: the art of working out in their weight room/gym. He had been there almost an hour when he suddenly felt something…strange.

The Zen-oriented drake put down the weights he had been using and closed his eyes. He began what the others generally called 'a psychic sweep' of the Pond. Generally, he could feel auras and chi from his teammates and others without even trying; but a 'psychic sweep' took a bit more concentration, since he would be looking for something specific.

First was Mallory. Her normal aura color was deep red, but something was troubling her now. But what?

He found Duke next. The ex-thief usually radiated a soft-blue color, but it was being muted for some reason…

Next was Wildwing. Their leader's aura color had changed several times since they had come to Earth, but it had eventually settled from black to a bright, metallic silver. But it was now a dark, murky gray.

Grin considered one possibility of why that might be, then went against it._ He has plenty reason to worry, _he thought, remembering when he last saw their leader earlier that morning.

He began to look for Nosedive's aura…

Grin's eyes snapped open. Generally, the teenager's aura was orange.

Now it was white.

The larger drake immediately got up and ran out of the gym, hoping to see the sudden cause of change…

_**RVRVRVRVRVRVRV**_

Duke and Mallory arrived to the outside of the Infirmary at the same time to see their leader sitting on one of the bench seats, almost completely bent over, his face buried in his hands.

This was _not _a good sign.

"Yo Wildwing, what happened?" Duke asked.

Their leader didn't answer. The ex-thief and fiery red-head just exchanged glances. If Wildwing wasn't answering, something must've happened to Nosedive.

That's when Grin rounded the corner and stopped. Duke and Mallory turned to face him as he stood for a few moments, catching his breath. Then, he asked the same question the other two were still wondering.

"What's happened to our young friend?"

"Ask him," Mallory said, pointing to their leader, who still hadn't taken any notice of their arrival. "He was like this when we got here."

Duke went over to Wildwing's side, sitting next to him. "Wildwing, what's wrong?" the former bandit asked again, placing a hand on his back. But as soon as Duke's hand touched Wildwing's back, he could feel their leader shaking. And it seemed to be increasing.

"…Wing?"

"Dive…h-he had j-just told me what…had h-happened…" Wildwing started, choking back sobs. "Tanya c-came in and was looking at him. Sh-she was asking me some questions…then…"

Grin sat on the other side of their leader, Mallory kneeling in front of Wing on the floor.

"It's alright Wildwing," the red head said softly, placing a hand on one of his knees. "Nosedive will be fine. He bounces back fast, no matter what hits him-"

"The monitor was going crazy," Wildwing managed to say.

It took a minute before what he said clicked and the others understood.

"The heart monitor?" Duke asked cautiously.

The only response they got was a sob.

_Great DuCaine,_ was the shared thought between the three.

For a few moments, they were all silent. Then, Duke spoke up. "Wing, it's alright," he said. "I know-"

"No you don't!" Wildwing exclaimed, finally looking up. He turned angry, tear-filled eyes to Duke. "I know what happened now. He told me why he did it last night. How could I have just sat back and allowed that to happen?!"

The other two were shocked at their leader's outburst. The ex-thief, however, just looked at him sadly. "It wasn't your fault Wing," he said quietly. "The kid saved ya last night because he loves you, looks up to you. What else was Dive supposed to do when he thought he could do anythin' to save his big broth'ah?"

As the words sunk into Wildwing's head, his anger began to disappear. Duke could see it leave his eyes as his face sank back into sadness.

The only emotion that was left for the older Flashblade now was agonizing sadness; and that in itself was like a metaphysical dagger to the heart, not only for Wildwing, but for Duke, the one who could see his whole face.

Though Duke knew that the others (or in this case, Mallory since Grin probably wouldn't) might pick on him later, he brought his arms around the younger drake and embraced him. "Everythin's gonna be fine," the ex-thief said. "You'll get to see Dive again. And when ya do, he'll probably start pickin' on ya for somethin' stupid he thought you said. He'll be himself. And you'll be there to see it."

Once again, silence settled among the group as the leader let these words soak into his skin. Wildwing's glistening eyes closed and the tears fell, the exhausted drake hiding his face in his comrade's shoulder.

If anyone else had been below the ice rink, they could've told you that all that could be heard throughout the halls for a long time was weeping.


	6. Dreams and The Invasion

HAI A-GAIN. Here's another chapter. Thus far, it's the longest I've ever written for a chapter, seeing that it was a little over 6 pages long in Microsoft Works. Anyway, I hope you all are enjoying this story. It's coming to a close sometime soon ^^;

P.S. The first scene is supposed to take place after the first time we see Puckworld in "The First Face-Off"; y'know, that scene where Nosedive, Canard, and Wildwing are shooting pucks in that alley or whatever

P.S.S. I dunno what the Ducks would believe in religiously (other than hockey and in Grin's case, whatever Tae Quack Do taught him). And since the phrase "Great Mother of Ducks" appears a couple of times from Duke, I figured that that might me some kind of indication. But I dunno *shrugs*

Disclaimer: I don't own MD:TAS. If I did, I'd be rich

* * *

"_Hurry up Dive, we're gonna be late!" an almost nineteen year old Wildwing called up the stairs._

"_Alright, alright, I'm coming!"_

_The fifteen year old ran down, ice skates over one shoulder, hockey stick in his right hand. "Geez Wing, think you can calm down a sec?" Dive asked, a grin on his face._

_Wildwing rolled his eyes. "C'mon you little dork, Mom and Dad are waiting for us down at Drake DuCaine Rink," he said. "Let's get our skates on and head down there before we're late." As annoyed as Wing might've seemed, he still had a smile on his face as the two headed out the door, the older one locking it as Nosedive sat down on the porch to lace up his skates._

"_So you think this hockey exhibition is gonna be that great?" Nosedive asked as Wildwing sat down next to him and began to tie his own ice skates. Today, the siblings were meeting their parents at Drake DuCaine Rink downtown for a special exhibition by the most prestigious hockey team on Puckworld; the DuCainian SilverSuns._

"_Of course it is Dive! It's the SilverSuns, the best hockey team on Puckworld. Why wouldn't it be awesome?" Wildwing asked, finishing up one foot and moving to the other._

_Nosedive stood up with his hockey stick and pivoted on his skates to face his brother. "I dunno, I've just never been to an exhibition before," the teen answered. "And you wanted to go to this thing for your Hatching Day-"_

"_I know, I know, even though it's still five days away," Wildwing finished, laughing a little. He finished lacing up his skates and stood up. "And that's why Mom and Dad left early, so they could get good spots."_

_The two started to skate off towards downtown. "So what's been with you lately Dive?" Wildwing asked. "Ever since your Hatching Day last month, you've been acting…different."_

_"Different how?"_

"_I dunno," Wing answered. "Like…you're being more careful."_

_Nosedive suddenly stopped, the ice on the ground coming up in a small sheet. _

_Wildwing turned around and stopped. "Dive?"_

"_It's just…something feels like it's coming," the teenager said, looking down at his feet, the hockey stick in his hand hanging limply. "I dunno what, but…"_

_"But what?"_

"_It feels…risky to be out and around," Dive answered. "Like something bad's gonna happen and there'll be nothing we can do about it. And it's gotten worse since we were shooting pucks around with Canard the other day."_

_Wildwing skated back to Nosedive, a worried look on his face. When he stopped in front of the teen, he placed his hands on his brother's shoulders. "Dive, look at me."_

_When Wildwing had the younger Flashblade's attention, he continued. "Nothing's coming," he said. "And even if something did, you know I wouldn't let anything happen to you. You _know _that, right?"_

_Nosedive nodded slowly. "I just…I can't shake off the feeling Wing," he said. "What am I supposed to do when I've got a hunch that I can't get rid of?"_

_For once, Wildwing didn't have an answer._

_**RVRVRVRVRVRVRV**_

"Do you think he'll be alright?" Mallory asked Duke. She was sitting on the floor still, not wanting to get up just yet.

"His inner tranquility will not return until our young friend is well," Grin said, looking at the now-sleeping leader. "Unfortunately, that may not be for quite some time."

Duke just continued to look down at his sleeping friend. After Wildwing had exhausted himself even more by weeping his heart out on the ex-thief's shoulder, he had fallen asleep. And since none of them had the heart to wake him up, Duke and Grin had settled Wildwing on the bench, the former bandit's lap becoming a pillow for their exhausted leader.

_It must've been strange to he'ah the story from Nosedive's perspective,_ Duke thought, stroking Wildwing's short hair with his right hand, more to comfort himself than their leader. _Now only the kid and Wing know exactly what happened in those few seconds that we couldn't see anythin'. _

"How long has it been?" asked Grin, who had moved from the bench seat to the floor, in front of the seats across from where Duke and Wildwing were.

"That's a good question," Mallory said, facing him. "He was already sitting out here when Duke and I arrived. So, really, we don't know how long."

"And that was what, an hour or so ago?" Duke asked quietly.

Mallory turned back around, now staring at the floor. "…yeah…"

So the three sat in silence. They didn't know what was happening on the other side of the Infirmary doors, but they did know one thing and it didn't feed their hopes.

The longer it took for someone to be revived, the less chance there was of them coming back. And they all knew that if they lost Nosedive in any way, shape, or form, they could possibly lose their leader as well. Of course, if it had been the other way around, it'd still be the same. The other members of the team had come to realize over their time on Earth that neither Flashblade could survive without the other.

Suddenly, the doors to the Infirmary 'whooshed' open. The three looked up to see Tanya there, a serious yet relieved look on her face.

"How's the kid?" Duke asked, his fingers becoming still.

The team techie/medic sighed. "Well, it was kinda hard," she started. "When Nosedive's heartbeat started - uh - going crazy, he passed out, but it never - y'know - stopped."

The other three exchanged glances, then just looked at Tanya. "What's that mean?" Mallory asked.

"It means that his heart kept beating but it was - uh - irregular," Tanya answered. "An electrolyte imbalance made his heart start to - uhm - go out of whack. So along with shocking him, I - uh - had to stick in an IV to reverse the imbalance."

"But he's gonna be alright, right?" Mallory asked, standing up from the floor to face Tanya.

"He'll be okay," the tech said. "But he needs more sleep. I'm gonna stick around down here and monitor him for a - uh - few hours." She then noticed that their team leader was asleep with his head on Duke's lap. "What happened to him?" she asked.

"Simply, he's worn out," the ex-thief said, looking from Tanya to Wildwing. "He's been worried sick 'bout the kid. That, an' the fact that he's only gotten a coupla' hou'ahs of sleep in the last twenty-four hou'ahs or so would probably have somethin' to do with it."

Tanya sighed. "Seems like he could do with some sleep then too," she said.

Suddenly, an idea popped into her head.

_**RVRVRVRVRVRVRV**_

_Wildwing laid back on the floor of the cell he was sharing with other ducks that had been captured. Hands under his head, he couldn't help but worry about the rest of his family._

_The Saurians had invaded Puckworld a month ago. It had come out of nowhere, the first strikes hitting Drake DuCaine Rink in the downtown area. Wildwing and Nosedive had both been close by when the Saurians had attacked, but had been separated while trying to escape. Their parents had both been at work, so Wildwing wasn't sure what had happened to them._

_But his parents weren't his biggest worry (as awful as that may have sounded). _

_His biggest concern was Nosedive. When the two had been separated, Wildwing had been put in one of the work camps; he didn't know what had happened to his younger brother. At worst, Dive might've been killed. At best, he was in another work camp. The only other fate that the older Flashblade could imagine was the mines. _

_But from what he had heard about the mines, the work camps were paradise. _

_Wildwing had only been in this specific camp for a week, and he had already heard horrible stories from others who had either been moved from a mine or from overhearing whatever the guards would say._

_As he closed his eyes and tried to sleep, he prayed that the rest of his family was alright._

_**RVRVRVRVRVRVRV**_

"You think this is alright?" Mallory asked.

"I assume it would be alright," Tanya said. "He'll be close to Nosedive and he - uh - won't be worrying so much when he wakes up."

About half an hour had passed since Tanya had told the others what had happened. When Duke had said that Wildwing probably just needed to sleep, Tanya had gotten the idea of letting Wing stay in the Infirmary. So Grin had carried their exhausted leader from the outer doors of their medical wing and to a bed next to Nosedive, the goalie not making a noise or moving at all while they transferred him.

"Will you be alright down here by yourself?" the red-head asked, remembering how Tanya had said she would be sticking around the Infirmary for awhile.

"I'll be fine," she answered. "I've got a book stashed around here somewhere, and nothing else _should _happen."

_Question is, will it?_ Duke thought, as he leaned against the wall next to the entrance and Grin just stood there next to him. He looked at the brothers and sighed. The ex-thief closed his eyes and bowed his head a little.

_Great Mother of all Ducks, please. Please, let them be alright, _Duke prayed.

There wasn't much that the former bandit believed in, but sometimes, he felt that praying to whoever or whatever would listen could help.

Even if the person praying didn't have all the belief in the world.

_**RVRVRVRVRVRVRV**_

_Nosedive followed the other prisoners as they were being taken to another work camp. _

_It had been two months since the invasion had started, and he hadn't seen Wildwing since that day. _

_But then again, they had been separated so fast that there had been no way to even find out where the older sibling was, or rather, where he had been taken. Nosedive had been trying to find out from other prisoners that had been arriving to the former camp he had been in if they had ever heard of Wildwing, but so far, no luck._

_So, arms bound as he and the other prisoners were walking into the newest camp, the teen sighed. He wished with everything he was that he could find his big brother. Dive couldn't remember a day in his life where Wildwing hadn't been there with him._

_Suddenly, the teen felt a twinge in his stomach. Instinct was starting to kick in, and it was telling him that something was close by. He looked around him as he was forced to keep walking, but he couldn't see anything that was out of the ordinary for a work camp._

_But then he saw something…familiar._

_Nosedive shook his head and looked again. And he didn't see him anymore._

Figures, _the teen thought sadly. _Just another dream squashed.

_Little did the teen know that what he had seen was real…_

_**RVRVRVRVRVRVRV**_

"…Wing…"

Tanya looked up from the notes she was taking about Nosedive when she heard that small voice. She put her pen down and got up from her chair at the Infirmary's only desk, walking over to the teen's bed. "Nosedive?" she asked.

No answer.

_Not that I really expected one,_ she thought, taking her penlight out of her breast pocket and clicking it on. She carefully opened one of Dive's eyes and took a look. _Still asleep. Though I wouldn't have taken Nosedive to be someone who talks in their sleep._

She turned the penlight off, closed his eye, and put the light back in her pocket. Looking over to the leader of the team in the bed next to the teenager, she sighed. _If you only knew that Dive's thinking about you, even when you're both asleep._

_**RVRVRVRVRVRVRV**_

_Wildwing looked up from the corner he was sitting in to see a few new prisoners being shoved into the cell. _Must've just come from another work camp,_ he thought, scanning over the few prisoners he could see. The cell in itself was large, and the guards kept cramming other prisoners into the chamber at the end of every other day. Soon there wouldn't be any room just to sit._

"_Ow! What, no 'good cop, bad cop' for us?"_

_Wildwing's body snapped to attention when he heard that. It couldn't be…_

_Getting up from his seat, he looked over the heads of the other prisoners in the cell. Moving towards where the new ones had been brought in, he thought he saw a familiar mop of blonde hair as he looked again…_

_**RVRVRVRVRVRVRV**_

"…Dive…"

Tanya looked over at her leader. It hadn't even been five minutes since she checked on the teenager when she heard Wildwing say his brother's name in his sleep. _Are they THAT worried about each other?_ she asked herself. The team tech watched as Wildwing shifted from his back to his side, now facing the younger Flashblade. He still looked exhausted, but there was a look of…relief?

_Why would he look relieved about something? Are their dreams that bad?_

_**RVRVRVRVRVRVRV**_

_Nosedive looked up from the spot on the ground he had been shoved onto. He could've _sworn_ he had just heard his name from someone. But as he looked through the faces that were in the cell, he didn't see anyone familiar-_

"_Nosedive!"_

_The teen felt himself being lifted up by his still-bound up arms and he was suddenly face-to-face with his older brother. "…Wildwing?" he asked, not believing that they were in the same place. _

_The older Flashblade looked over him for a moment, to make sure his brother was all there. No missing limbs, neither eyes where gone, nothing. Other prisoners had been subjected to vast amounts of torture and were now without certain limbs. But there stood the fifteen year old, physically whole._

_Wildwing just smiled and quickly hugged the teenager, feeling so many things that he couldn't have summed it up in one word other than relief. _

_Nosedive, while exhilarated to see his brother, couldn't help but wince when Wing's arms wrapped around him. He didn't think the older one would've been able to tell, but Wildwing immediately let go and looked at him. "What's wrong?"_

"_Uh…it's my back," Dive confessed. "Kinda hurts."_

"_Looks like your hands do too," the other said, looking at Nosedive's bound up arms. He began to lead the younger one to the corner he'd previously been sitting in. "C'mon, let me take a look."_

_As soon as the two got situated in the corner of the cell, Wildwing took a sharp piece of rock he'd picked up one day while he was able to be outside and began to cut at the rope around his brother's arms. "I didn't think this would actually come in handy," he said quietly, more to himself than Nosedive._

"_Didn't think you'd see me again either though, did'ja?"_

_Wildwing looked up at Dive's face, somewhat surprised that he'd say something like that. "It's alright, I kinda had the same thing going through my head," Nosedive told him. "It's just…when we got separated-"_

"_I'm sorry."_

_The teenager looked from his arms to his brother's face. "What'cha sorry for?" he asked._

_Wildwing sighed, but continued to cut through the ropes. "Before the invasion, I promised that I wouldn't let anything happen to you," he said quietly. "But we got separated. So…I'm sorry." _

_He cut the last cord that was wrapped around Nosedive's arms and the ropes fell off. Nosedive rubbed his aching wrists for a moment as the elder sibling pocketed the sharp rock in his hand. Wildwing looked his brother in the eye and said, "Let me see your back."_

"_Wing, it's really okay, it's just a little-"_

"_Nosedive."_

_The teen sighed. "Alright," he said. "But you're not gonna like it." He slowly removed his ratty, torn vest and t-shirt, hissing a little as he did so. Then he turned around for Wildwing to see._

_Multiple scabbed over wounds from a whip's lash decorated the younger Flashblade's back. _

"_Dive, what happened?" Wildwing asked, a little shocked. What reason would there have been for the guards to torture the younger one?_

_Nosedive sighed. "Some kids a couple of years younger than me thought it would be…defiant…to start throwing rocks at some of the drones that were guarding us one day," the fifteen year old answered. "When they realized that doing that would get their butts fried, I took the blame. So the guards did this to me."_

"…_how long ago?"_

_The younger one thought for a minute. "Maybe a week or so ago," he said. "My days are starting to kinda blend together."_

_Wildwing stared at the marks, feeling worse than he had in the last two months. "Bro…I'm so sorry."_

"_Aw no, don't start that again," Dive said, starting to put his shirt and vest back on. "I chose to protect those brats because they did something stupid. I kept thinking what you would do, so I took the rap for it."_

"_So you had a 'What Would Wildwing Do' moment?" the elder asked jokingly._

"_You could say that," Nosedive said, turning back around after he finished dressing, a smile on his face. _

_Wildwing sighed. What he was feeling was _not _going to be easy to describe to his younger brother. "Dive, I just want you to know something."_

"_What's that?"_

"_I'm going to protect you, no matter what happens from here on out. I tried to when those overgrown lizards first struck, but we got separated too fast. I…I couldn't find you in all that chaos. I've been worried sick that something…worse…happened to you._

"_So from now, I don't care what happens to me, but I'm going to protect you."_

_"Then I have to obey that too," Nosedive said. "I don't care if I'm the younger one here, you're all I got left. We…we don't know what happened to mom and dad…"_

_Wildwing frowned. "That's right," he said sadly. "We don't."_

_Later that night, if anyone had wondered about the two Flashblades beforehand, they could now see that they were connected somehow; the brothers were in the corner they had occupied earlier, one of the older one's arms around his younger brother's shoulders, the teen resting his head in the crook of the other's neck and shoulder while the older one rested his head against that wild, untamed mop of blonde hair._

_They both slept soundly for the first time since being forced into Hell._


	7. A Compromise, Skating, and an Old Memory

HAI AGAIN. Here's the last chapter (I promise!) of this particular story. I hope you guys enjoy this chapter and have liked the story =3

P.S. I think this is the first chapter in awhile where I didn't have to research anything ^-^

Disclaimer: I don't own MD:TAS. If I did, I'd be rich

* * *

Wildwing woke up, feeling…better. Like he had actually slept a full night or so. The only thing that bothered him was the fact that the area just under his eyes felt odd. Like…

Then his eyes widened and he suddenly remembered. _Nosedive!_

He shot up on the bed, looking around. _What the? What am I doing in the Infirmary?_

"Welcome back to reality bro."

Wildwing looked over to the bed next to him to see Nosedive, a comic book in hand, looking at his big brother. "What took you so long to wake up? It's been boring in here," the teen said.

"Nosedive…?"

"The one and only!"

Wildwing quickly got out of the bed he had been laying on, pushing the covers off. He closed the distance between himself and Nosedive's bed. "Nosedive!" Wildwing gasped, looking down at the younger one. "Thank Drake you're alright!"

"What're ya…? Oh, right that," Nosedive said, laying the comic on his chest. " 'Course I'm fine. I didn't die, so I'm alright."

"You idiot!" Wildwing exclaimed, slamming his hands on an empty space of Nosedive's bed. "I've been worried sick about you!" He closed his eyes, feeling new tears coming. "You…stupid…idiot…"

Nosedive sighed, looking up at the goalie. He knew that Wing had every right to be upset, but he _seriously_ needed to stop worrying so much. Or at least, that's what the teen thought.

_I wish you would stop doing this to yourself,_ Nosedive thought, trying to read more of Wing's face. He could see the tears that didn't seem to want to stop falling from the older Flashblade's eyes. "Wing, it's alright. I know you keep worrying, but you don't need to-"

"Of course I do!"

Nosedive just stared at Wildwing as the older one continued. "I p-p-promised to protect you b-back home after the Invasion, then again after we joined the Re-resistance. I've been doing a horrible job at it-"

"No you haven't," the teenager said.

Wildwing opened his eyes, tears still falling. "You've been doing great," Nosedive told him. "I've just been doing what I said I would; you're all I got left bro. If I could do something to help you, I'd do it. Hasn't that occurred to ya yet?"

That last line brought a memory back to Wildwing's mind.

"_The kid saved ya last night because he loves you, looks up to you. What else was Dive supposed to do when he thought he could do anything to save his big broth'ah?"_

Wildwing closed his eyes again, sighing.

"Wing?"

The leader pulled over a nearby chair and sat down, drying what tears were left. "I'm sorry Dive."

"What the heck?! Didn't I-"

Wildwing held up a hand to command silence. "I'm not finished," he simply said, opening his eyes. Putting his hand down, the leader continued. "I'm sorry for not listening to you. You were right about not shooting Siege. If it had been the other way around, I probably - no, I _would _have - done what you did."

Nosedive just looked at the older one, listening to what he said.

"There's probably a hundred other things I should be apologizing for, but in all honesty, I couldn't name them all. All I can say now is…well, I'm glad you're alright. And…"

Nosedive just waited for a moment. When his brother didn't continue, he asked, "And what?"

Wildwing couldn't look Nosedive in the eye as he continued. He felt ashamed of himself, and didn't know how his brother was going to respond to anything he had been saying. "…I love you Dive. I honestly don't remember the last time I told you that, so I thought I should say it now, if anything else happens."

The teenager smiled. "Feel better?" he asked after a minute.

Wildwing looked at the younger one, slowly smiling for the first time since he had woken up the other night. "Yeah, I do," he said.

"Good, 'cuz I love you too big bro."

The brothers just looked at each other and smiled, glad to have reached a compromise.

_**RVRVRVRVRVRVRV**_

_FINALLY, _Tanya thought. _Wildwing's gotten whatever complex he had._

The team tech/medic had been about to enter the Infirmary when she had heard voices. Not wanting to disturb the Flashblades conversation, she stayed outside and just listened to what she was able to hear through the Infirmary doors.

"Tanya?"

The techie just indicated 'quiet' when Mallory tried to speak. After a moment, Tanya said, "They're both awake. Seems Wing got over - uh - whatever was bothering him."

"I was beginning to wonder if he would," Mallory commented.

"So what'cha down here for?" Tanya asked her red-headed friend. She honestly didn't have a clue what the other had to do down here, since the Infirmary had a different part of the Pond to itself.

Mallory shrugged. "Came to see if you wanted to eat lunch," she said. "You were here all night last night and I didn't know if you'd eaten breakfast. Since it's _supposed _to be Wildwing's day to make the food, but he's, uhm, - currently busy - I figured I'd take over today."

"Duke and Grin wanted you to come check on me, didn't they?"

"That'd be one way of saying it," Mallory confessed. "But I was serious about cooking today." She paused, looking at the door in front of her. "Think they'd want to eat too?"

"Wildwing? Definitely, considering he's - y'know - barely eaten anything since…well, two days ago," Tanya said. "And I bet Dive's starving."

So the two went off to scrounge up some food for the Infirmary dweller (for the time being) and his brother.

_**RVRVRVRVRVRVRV**_

_Two Months Later…_

Wildwing sat in the penalty box, its door open as he watched his younger brother slowly skate around the rink. It had been a long recovery so far for the teenager, but with each passing day, Tanya said he was getting better. Dive's leg had healed first so he was allowed to skate again, as long as he had someone close by to watch.

One of the good things about the timing of when Nosedive had gotten hurt was that it had happened just after the Stanley Cup finals, so the season was over meaning no games to worry about. The bad thing was that Phil had tried to do anything he could to get publicity stunts set up, but since the youngest had been/was still hurt, the team didn't really have anything to do during the off-season.

Not much of anything anyway.

Wildwing and Nosedive had been up on the rink level of the Pond for about half an hour before the older sibling noticed his brother was stopping. Figuring that it was time to go, Wildwing got up from his seat, stepping onto the ice, and skated over to the youngest team member. "You alright Dive?" the elder asked after he had stopped.

Nosedive was wobbling a little, looking beat, and was panting slightly. "Just peachy," the teen answered. "Seriously though, I'm tired. Can we go back down?"

The leader chuckled. "Sure," he simply answered. He pivoted on the ice, where his back was facing Nosedive, bending down a little.

The teenager looked at him, confused.

"C'mon, you're getting a free ride," Wildwing answered, looking back at Nosedive. "You look so tired that you'll fall over if you try to skate off the ice, much less walk around when we get back down under the rink."

The teen smiled. He wrapped his arms around Wildwing's neck and raised his right leg. Wing picked up his brother's right leg under the knee and lifted, doing the same to the other. After adjusting the smaller-framed duck on his back, Wildwing started to skate off the ice.

"I can't remember the last time I got a free ride," Nosedive said, sounding a little sad.

"It's been awhile," Wildwing agreed. "I think the last time was during the Invasion, when you got sick. Remember?"

"…a little," Dive finally said. "I remember not being able to do anything for a week. The guards were pi-"

"Nosedive Flashblade."

This brought a smile to the teen. "Alright, they were mad. Happy now bro?"

Wildwing laughed a little. "Yeah," he answered. "I am."

He stepped up from the ice to the part that would take them to the locker room, humming a tune quietly. By the time the leader had reached the elevator, he thought Dive was asleep. But this was not the case.

"Hey bro?"

"Yeah Dive?"

"I'm tired and hungry at the same time. Which one's better to go with?"

Wildwing laughed. "I think sleep would be better for you," he answered. "I'm not waking you up if you fall asleep while eating triple spicy tacos."

"You're no fun," Nosedive yawned, trying to use Wildwing's neck as a pillow.

"Well think of it this way," Wing told him, stepping into the elevator. "When you wake up, it'll most likely be time for dinner and you can eat then."

The ride down to the lower parts of the Pond and walk to the room Wing and Dive shared was relatively quiet, other than the *clink clink* of Wildwing's skates against the floor as he carefully carried his younger brother. By the time Wildwing had reached their room, the teenager was asleep…but he still had his skates on.

So the elder sibling lowered the younger one onto the bottom bunk (they had decided to switch for the duration of Nosedive's recovery when Tanya had released him from the Infirmary) and laid him down. Wing then started to take off the skates that still were on Dive's feet, knowing that falling asleep with them on was not the smartest thing to do.

After removing both Nosedive's and his own ice skates, Wildwing placed them next to the couch and sat down. He gazed at the sleeping teen, a memory suddenly coming to mind, though it was a bit hazy:

_Both Flashblade parents were speaking with a doctor while filling out official documents, saying that their newest son was whole and healthy, as well as stating the youngster's name. _

_Wildwing just sat in the chair his father had vacated, watching his new brother. Since Nosedive had hatched a few hours ago, the doctors had taken off the top half of the incubator and had allowed the parents to cover their child with his first blanket. The child laying there had drifted off to sleep some time ago, something Wildwing was feeling like he should do too._

I can't,_ Wildwing thought, shaking his head to keep himself awake._ Nosedive needs me. Dad said it's my job to protect him!

_Suddenly, the sleeping duckling in the uncovered incubator began to stir. Wildwing watched as the newborn wiggled a little and opened his eyes. As Wildwing watched Dive, it seemed to him that the duckling was looking for something, but Wing didn't know what._

_The elder Flashblade sibling got to his knees on the chair he was sitting on and leaned forward a bit. Placing his hand on the side of the uncovered incubator like he had when his brother had first started to hatch, he smiled and began to talk._

"_Hi Nosedive." _

_When the newborn's attention turned to him, Wing smile grew. _

" '_Member me? I'm Wildwing! I'm your big brother now, so you're kinda stuck with me. Mama says that when you're bigger, we can teach you to skate so you can play hockey and do loads of other stuff. But right now you're too little, so we can do other stuff until you get bigger."_

_The duckling laying there stared at Wildwing for a minute, then smiled as if he had understood everything that his older brother had just said. He tried to reach out his tiny hand and touched the other side of the open incubator. If the plastic hadn't been separating the two, the Flashblade siblings hands would've been touching…_

The memory suddenly faded and Wildwing looked back at Nosedive, still asleep on the bunk. He noticed that the younger one was shivering a little. The goalie got up, walked over to the bed, and pulled the blankets up to Dive's shoulders. The younger sibling settled down after a minute, smiling a little.

"Sleep tight baby brother," Wildwing said quietly. "You need it and deserve it."

He was about to walk away when he heard Dive say something. "Will do," the teenager answered sleepily.

Wildwing was confused about this. Had Dive heard what he said?

"But I dunno…if I can eat all those tacos, Mr. President."

Apparently not.

Wildwing couldn't help but burst out into laughter after hearing Nosedive talk in his sleep.


End file.
